In a Thanksgiving Day clash, the Loyola Ramblers earned a hard-fought victory in the Hall of Fame Classic consolation game over the Boston College Eagles by a score of 71-68.
The win now moves them to an even 3-3 on the year and gives them some positives to head back to Chicago with. Here are three observations from the win:
Brad3n is back
Rambler fans are especially thankful for one man today and that is Braden Norris. The graduate student hasn’t had the start he was looking for from beyond the arc so far, making only six buckets for a total percentage of 27% from beyond the arc.
Today, however, he looked like the Norris of old, draining five threes to lead the team with 20 points. Norris also dished out four assists and, despite his size, led the Ramblers with seven rebounds overall.
It’s raining threes!
U.S. & World
It wasn’t just Norris that enjoyed a resurgence from beyond the arc. The Ramblers feasted today, making a combined 13 buckets from three-point range, impressive for a team that has averaged a little over seven threes per contest in their first five games.
Making a strong impact was Jayden Dawson, who shocked Rambler fans by making a return from an injury in the game against Creighton yesterday. While he went 1-of-10 from the field yesterday, it was a completely different story today, as the guard went 4-of-8 from beyond the arc, contributing a career-high 14 points.
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Problems from the Post (which one?)
The Ramblers’ perimeter defense was immaculate today, holding the Eagles to an 17.4%clip from three-point range. However, this forced them to find other ways to score, which they did, with 42 of their 68 points coming within the post. Leading them was Quinten Post (quite a fitting name), who paced all scorers today with 25 points as well as nine rebounds.
The Ramblers will now prepare to host in-city rival Chicago State at Gentile Arena, with a 7 p.m. tip scheduled for Tuesday in a game that will air on ESPN-Plus.
